Mystery Rider
by Medgrl11
Summary: Someone's got a new bike...see how this story ends.
1. Chapter 1: Mystery Rider

As the winter drear and bitter Boston cold gave way to spring, the city was met with weekly down pours. Not exactly the best timing for someone who recently bought a red, 2010 Kawasaki, in the hopes of saving on fuel, getting better parking spots, and well just looking bad ass.

The rider patiently merged onto the chaotic freeway, making sure to check all blind spots and sped up to get into the next exit lane. In the hazy drizzle, the bike was a blur of red, mixed with the black of a leather jacket, and a growling engine that announced the rider before turning down the congested main street. Swerving left then right to avoid parked cars and pot holes the rider finally stopped at the entrance of a long alley. The entrance to the alley had been blocked off with yellow police tape. The rider dismounted and walked towards the crime scene, helmet still on.

Dr. Maura isles leaned over the bloodied body—which she estimated had been murdered and abandoned at around 3:30 a.m. that morning. She meticulously continued her note-taking until her train of thought was interrupted by the powerful rowr of an approaching motorcycle. Although she had openly expressed her distaste towards riders of such machines, her heart always raced a little when she thought of the type of man who embodied the image. Even she had to admit that owning a bike was a turn on.

Watching the rider dismount and walk down the alley, clad in a leather jacket, black boots and a red helmet her curiosity was suddenly piqued. That swagger. Those boots. It was all so familiar to her. _Wait a minute. No way._

As if out of a movie, the rider removed her helmet and shook out her unruly brunette mane, attempting to restyle her hair with one hand. Jane Rizzoli unzipped the front of her leather jacket half way and pulled out a manila folder that had been safely guarded and kept dry against her breast during the entire ride. With a crooked grin she handed the ME the file.

_Ha! I knew that entrance would do the trick. She totally thinks that I'm hot on that bike._

The ME just stared, not registering the outstretched hand or the proffered file. Her heart raced faster than expected. _Correction. A woman on a bike is hot. And Jane on a bike is just…_

"Are you gonna take it? Or should I pull up a seat for the rest of the day?"

"Oh! Sorry Jane, I just, you surprised me; would you like me to review my findings thus far?"

Maura immediately switched back to professional mode, in attempt to cover up her slack-jawed reaction.

"That would be lovely Maur. Go ahead."

Not even the grim crime scene could wipe the grin off the Detective's face.


	2. Chapter 2: Rock 'N Roll Baby

**Disclaimer: The characters below belong to Tess Gerritsen. The music belongs to the rock goddess that is Joan Jett. I don't profit from them in any way! Apologies for any grammatical mistakes. Enjoy.**

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><p><span>CHAPTER 2: ROCK 'N ROLL BABY<span>

Thursday morning found the Detective typing away madly at her computer. She was starving and determined to finish the latest case report by 1 o'clock. Occasionally taking a sip of her now cold coffee, she was relieved to finally finish by her deadline.

"Score!" She pumped her fist in the air.

"What's up? You find some bad-ass accessory for your bike or something?" Frost chuckled.

"Noo and if you keep up the sarcastic remarks I _definitely_ won't let you ride her."

"Ride who Jane?" Maura had, as usual, appeared at the most awkward juncture in the casual conversation. Frost suppressed a laugh which resulted in a humorous snort, earning a glare from Jane.

"No one. Uh, you ready to go to lunch? I'm starving."

Puzzled, but too hungry to address the comment, Maura smiled and nodded.

Over lunch Jane talked incessantly about her love for her new bike. It had only been a week since the purchase and the Detective was clearly smitten. Luckily for Jane, Maura had taken her friend's new interest to heart and had done much reading on the subject matter. Consequently, she could talk mechanic with the best of them.

"Sorry Maur, I am obsessing over the bike again. New topic. What are your plans for the weekend?"

"Well I…oh shoot!"

"What's wrong?"

"I forgot to mention, I'm going to New York this weekend."

Maura looked apologetically at Jane, admonishing herself for not keeping Jane up to date with her life.

"Oh yea? That's nice. What are you going to do in the city for the whole weekend…by yourself?"

Secretly Jane hoped that Maura's next words would not revolve around "meeting a secret lover" or "weekend tryst".

"Well my mother will be in town since she is overseeing a new art installation this month. She invited me stay with her at the Gramercy Park Hotel."

Maura smiled broadly, her eyes lighting up like a child's. Jane shared in the smile; partly because her friend was not visiting a secret lover and partly because Maura looked so damn adorable when she smiled like that.

"Haha, that's great Maura, I'm so happy that you'll get to spend some time with her. Do you want me to look after Bass?"

"Actually yes, I was supposed to ask you that on Monday to give you sufficient time to check your schedule. I'm sorry, that was rude of me."

"No problem Maur. My only plans this weekend are to kick back with a beer and maybe kick Frankie's ass at a game of basketball."

Maura laughed lightly and bit her tongue. She avoided reminding Jane of the nose injury she sustained the last time she beat Frankie.

"Then that works out perfectly. You are welcome to stay in the main house and use whatever you like. The pool cleaner has already cleaned out the pool and hot tub if you're interested. And I'll leave the fridge fully stocked with your favorite beer."

"Sounds good. Just one thing…is there any chance you can somehow forget to tell Ma I'll be right next door this weekend?"

"Jane…"

The Detective grunted and sighed.

"Fine."

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><p>The Detective spent her Saturday night in Maura's living room watching movies from the ME's extensive DVD collection while eating her favorite pizza and drinking her favorite brew. Maura really had stocked the fridge with all things Jane: beer, freshly made lasagna courtesy of Angela Rizzoli and cookies and cream ice cream. Halfway into the second chick flick Jane's thoughts began to wander towards her relationship with her best friend.<p>

She began to realize how much Maura did for her out of kindness on a weekly basis. It was all the little things that came to mind, like offering to have her suits dry-cleaned or bringing her coffee from her favorite café in the morning. The detective chalked up the new surge of sappy emotions to the 4 beers and 2 romantic comedies, but she also admitted that she cared a great deal for Maura as well.

_Tomorrow I'm going to do something nice for her to show her how much I appreciate everything she does for me._

At 10 a.m. on Sunday morning Jane Rizzoli awoke to the sounds of birds chirping outside the guest bedroom window of her best friend's deluxe abode. She stretched, reveling in the feeling of sleeping in late and the comfort of an expensive mattress. She always said that she slept better at Maura's place than her own apartment.

After brushing her teeth and pulling on a white tank top, she fed Bass and Joe and put a pot of coffee on. While opening the fridge to get cream she was reminded of the promise she had made herself the previous night.

_Alright what's something that Maura needs to get done but won't do herself..._

Looking around the meticulous home she ruled out the possibility of house-cleaning. Then it struck her.

"Her car! She said she need to get it washed, I'll just do it for her. Oh, I wonder if she has car wax", she said excitedly to her only captive audience. Joe simply barked and wagged her tail.

After a light breakfast of scrambled eggs, Jane got to work. She first searched Maura's closet for something she could get dirty but also avoid receiving a scolding for getting dirty. After a few minutes of rummaging through a storage box marked "for donation" Jane found an old, worn-out pair of cut off denim shorts.

"Perfect! She definitely won't be missing these. Although I will have to ask her when she ever wore these…can't imagine Maura in these at all."

Jane chuckled at the thought of how the ME must have dressed in the 80's. She then applied sunscreen and put her hair in a loose pony-tail. She looked down at Joe who was already standing in the hallway outside the garage door.

"Let's do this Joe."

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><p>It was a beautiful, warm Sunday and the drive from the airport was pleasurable. Maura had enjoyed her time with her mother and was looking forward to spending the remainder of her weekend with Jane. She had such a good friend in Jane, and she felt lucky to have people who cared for her deeply.<p>

After the cab dropped her off at her front gate she made her way to her front door. Midway on the walkway she stopped in her tracks. A strange noise could be heard emanating from the back of the house.

_What on earth is that noise? Is Jane having a party while I'm away?_

Leaving her suitcase in the foyer she went back outside to investigate the source of the noise that was blaring from the driveway.

_"Midnight, gettin' uptight. Where are you?  
>You said you'd meet me, now it's quarter to two<br>I know I'm hangin' but I'm still wantin' you.  
>Hey, Jack, It's a fact they're talkin' in town.<br>I turn my back and you're messin' around.  
>I'm not really jealous, don't like lookin' like a clown.<br>I think of you ev'ry night and day.  
>You took my heart, then you took my pride away."<br>_

The lyrics became more familiar to Maura as she approached the side of the house. A grin spread across her face as she remembered the first time she had heard the song.

"I hate myself for loving you.  
>Can't break free from the the things that you do.<br>I wanna walk but I run back to you, that's why  
>I hate myself for loving you."<p>

Her first girlfriend had introduced her to the album, which she claimed she had stolen from her older brother at the time. The short relationship was kept private of course because Maura knew her parents would not approve of her dating a female…especially one who didn't come from a wealthy family nor attended private school. But Maura had enjoyed those thrilling make out sessions with the dark-haired, punky girl who had introduced her to Joan Jett. She hadn't thought about these memories in years.

Maura's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a loud howl and the sight of a gyrating Jane Rizzoli wearing her old pair of cut-offs and washing her Prius. She could feel her pulse increase as a familiar sensation of longing began to creep from her abdomen to lower regions.

_Oh my…_

Unaware of her audience and deafened by the awesome guitar riffs Jane continued to sing the words she knew and dance to her favorite album. The Detective was in rock 'n roll bliss until…

"Ahem!"

Maura attempted to gain the Detective's attention as subtlety has possible over the loudness.

Feeling her face turn a deep shade of pink from the imminent embarrassment, Jane looked down at her soaked shirt and shorts before attempting to compose herself.

_Awesome.  
><em>  
>She turned away from the trunk of the car.<p>

"Oh, hey Maura! You're back early, let me just turn down the music!"

The Detective managed to blurt out a greeting before turning quickly towards the CD player.  
>Happy for the distraction, Maura instructed herself to stop staring at Jane's soaked tank top and prepare for a friendly interaction. Emphasis on 'friendly'.<p>

"I see you're washing my car. That's so nice of you; I've been meaning to get it cleaned."

"You're welcome. I'm almost done applying the wax coat actually."

Jane gestured towards the gleaming car.

"It looks wonderful and I'm glad to see that Joe has been helping."

The ME chuckled and pointed at a napping pooch whose scruffy head was currently resting on a large, yellow sponge.

"Hah. Yea she's been keeping me company. Why don't you go inside and change. You're probably tired from travelling. I'll join you in a sec, okay?"

The ME suppressed a yawn and agreed, suggesting she order their favorite Thai delivery for dinner.  
>As she turned towards the house Maura couldn't help herself from making one parting remark about Jane's appearance.<p>

"You know, Jane, you look much hotter in those shorts than I ever did. You should hold on to them."

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><p>**<em>Reviews are nice things <em>


	3. Chapter 3: What We Do Best

**Disclaimer: The characters below belong to Tess Gerritsen. Apologies for any grammatical mistakes. Enjoy.**

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><p><em>As she turned towards the house Maura couldn't help herself from making one parting remark about Jane's appearance.<em>

_"You know, Jane, you look much hotter in those shorts than I ever did. You should hold on to them."_

CHAPTER 3: WHAT WE DO BEST

Walking down the short hallway that lead to Maura's spacious living room, Jane heard her friend humming a familiar tune in the kitchen. The detective chuckled and shook her head.

_Good to know she's heard of Joan Jett; maybe we have something in common after all._

"Hey Maur? I'm trying not to track in dirty water here but do you think I could use your bathroom? I could really use a hot shower."

The ME found the brunette slightly shivering in the living room, hopping from one foot to the other and doing her best to prevent her clothing from dripping on the wood floor.

_God she looks adorable._

"Oh Jane, I'm sorry. Why don't you just use my master bath instead? The tub has been cleaned and it's a Jacuzzi so you can use the jets if you'd like. There are fresh towels in the cupboard and you'll find bath oils or gel by the sink. Just yell if you need anything, I'm waiting for the delivery person to bring the Thai food."

"Thanks! A bath sounds amaazzing. I'll be quick!" Jane yelled the last bit from the stairs as she galloped towards Maura's bedroom.

As Maura began to cut some fresh greens for a light salad—an attempt to supplement Jane's fried diet—she pondered the feelings she had experienced upon witnessing Jane gyrating in her driveway. Just the image of the lanky brunette, soaked, wearing cut off shorts and acting care-free caused her to blush again.

_Time to open that bottle of wine._

She uncorked the bottle of merlot and retrieved two glasses.

Meanwhile, Jane was slipping into a steaming, hot bath. As her lithe body slipped beneath the water she allowed the aroma of rose bath oil to waft over her. She sighed audibly.

"Now this is the life."

As she shut her eyes the same thoughts that had kept her mind stirring each night for the past 6 months began to replay themselves.

_I bet Maura takes baths here all the time. Can you imagine how amazing she looks relaxing in this tub? Her hair pinned up that sexy way, that adorable smile on her lips, her amazing body…naked. Ugh! Stop it! Stop! She's your friend!_

As she berated herself internally she shook her head as well, causing the bath water to become slightly turbulent. Jane opened her eyes, her entire being still relaxed, but her mind a little less so. Then she heard a sound; were those footsteps?

"Maura?"

No answer.

In the hallway Maura carefully held two glasses of wine while juggling thoughts of broaching the subject of her new feelings and what they meant, along with how to open the heavy wooden door. She decided that going forward gently would be prudent on both accounts.

"Jane? I thought you might like some—"

"Maura! Wha? No! Stop! I'm naked in here! Don't look!" The flustered detective began to fruitlessly cover her submerged body with her hands while her friend simply began to laugh and turn her back away. Looking in the opposite corner of the room Maura controlled her laughter and set down the glasses.

"Now, Jane. I'm a physician, I have seen many female bodies your age and besides we change together all the time."

"Uh yea! Dead bodies! And we don't change together naked! We change quickly, in the yoga locker room, with underwear on, there's a difference!"

"Wow, sorry, I just didn't know you were so body shy. I grew up in an all-girls boarding school, so you can see how this isn't a problem for me. Now may I please at least sit next to you if I don't look?"

The detective let out a petulant huff but agreed.

"Fine. But no looking…not like you'd want to anyway." Although she had meant the last part for herself, her friend unfortunately had exceptional hearing.

"What? You can't mean—Jane? Jane, you have an amazing body. If anything I should be the one who is intimidated by your, well, nudity. However, I have come to terms with my negative and positive physical attributes." The ME said this with a proud smile and took a gulp of her delicious wine.

"Your 'negative' attributes? And those are…?" Jane delivered in a disbelieving tone. "Compared to my boy-like frame, you are like a guy's ultimate fantasy. Blonde hair, amazing legs, big—uh…anyways. Can I try some of that wine?"

Maura was unable to suppress the giggle that arose at Jane's anatomical omission and her heart swelled at the compliments. Coming from Jane such words were certain to be sincere and honest.

"I don't see how I can hand you a glass and avoid seeing you naked. See? This is silly. Can I please just talk to you face to face now?"

Jane realized that she actually didn't feel uncomfortable at all-after the initial shock-and the praise that her best friend had just given her regarding her body had boosted her confidence.

"Shoulda used the bubble bath…just had to use the scented oil." Jane's eyes gleamed with humor as she spoke and Maura could hear it in her voice. She assumed Jane was comfortable now.

"Here you go detective. You deserve this after laboring over my car."

Maura sat down beside Jane, facing her this time, and gave her a sly grin.

"Thanks. Mmm this is good wine. So now that we are okay with seeing each other naked…"

Maura nearly choked at the off-hand remark. Jane often used sarcasm to mask underlying feelings; maybe she could use this opportunity to seek out Jane's true feelings as well. She decided to feign innocence.

"Yes, well. It is natural to act this way around one's best friend, right? I mean women do this sort of thing all the time, so I've heard."

"Haha, do what? Lounge around naked, drinking wine together? Yes, some women do that together…there is a word for those types of women Maura."

The ME tilted her head to the side, analyzing the riddle.

"Oh! Lesbians!"

Jane laughed and covered her eyes at her friend's enthusiasm.

"Wow. Yes. Good job braniac."

"But Jane, we're not…I mean, lesbians? I for one have slept with many men and you…well, you date as well."

Maura noticed that her wine glass was empty and a feeling of calm had overcome Jane as well. Mostly likely due to the combined effects of alcohol and aromatics. Now was surely the time to breach the topic of new feelings.

"Many eh? How many? And yes, I date, thank you. Okay we're not finishing this conversation in here." She gestured at her surroundings.

_Dammit, I was so close. Jane is finally opening up to me. If only I could get her to keep talking._

"Why not?" Maura tried to push her luck.

"Because this bath water is starting to get cold and the Thai delivery guy is probably waiting outside your door right now. Dinner? Remember?"

"Oh! Shoot! I'll meet you downstairs."

Jane laughed as she toweled off, letting her mind get the best of her.

_How does she do that? I can barely be naked around my own Ma and I always turn off the lights when I have sex with guys. No other woman has ever seen me naked. And I have this distinct feeling she was about to reveal something extremely personal to me. Only Maura can make me comfortable with all of this stuff. _

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><p>The two women sat in comfortable silence, concentrating on their gourmet Thai take-out. Maura spoke first.<p>

"So earlier I meant to tell you something Jane. Now, I'd like to preface the following with the fact that I respect you very much and consider you the closest friend I have ever had. I in no way want what I tell you to affect our current relationship, or friendship so-to-speak."

The ME looked up expectantly into her friend's eyes.

"Um, okay. I'm all ears."

"Okay." The blonde took a calming breath and coached herself mentally.

"Today, when you were washing my car, I realized something."

Jane gave Maura a quizzical look and shrugged her shoulders to indicate that she should continue.

"I guess I never realized until today that I was so strongly attracted to you. I mean, physically and emotionally."

The ME delivered this information rapidly, hoping that it would be easier for Jane to take. With a tensed expression she watched as the brunette slowly swallowed her food and swallowed a large gulp of wine.

"You know, it's funny. I have been editing phrases in my head for the past 6 months to explain what you just said in a few words. Maura, I'm so attracted to you that I feel like I'm going insane."

Maura released a sigh of relief and then relaxed into a new smile; one that reflected her true feelings for the woman sitting across the table from her.

"Oh Jane, I am so happy that we are having this conversation. You are not going insane, and I'm not going insane, we are just…huh, actually what are we?"

"I dunno Maura. I just know that I'm really glad you feel the same way, cuz I'd hate to think where Ma would end up if our friendship went up in flames."

The blonde laughed and lightly hit her friend on the arm.

"So what do we do now Jane?"

"Come on, let's go do what we do best."

"What's that?"

"Sit on your couch, with a glass of wine, and talk this out."

Standing up the brunette held out her hand. The blonde cheerfully took it and the two women sat down on the leather sofa. Over the past few months Jane had gotten quite comfortable with their lounging positions. She would lay out on the couch with her head on the armrest while Maura rested on a pillow propped against Jane's stomach. Now Maura allowed herself more direct contact, she simply rested her head on Jane's stomach rather than a pillow. Wine truly worked magic on her level of forwardness.

"Is this okay? Or am I crushing you?"

In all honesty the ME was too comfortable to care either way. She could feel Jane's laugh reverberate into her own body.

"Nah no worries. I'm all yours; have been since the day we started working together and am now."

Maura glanced up at Jane with misty, hazel eyes.

"Really Jane?"

Jane debated on responding with a cheesy, wrote line but chose something much better. Leaning down and caressing the smaller woman's cheek, Jane placed a soft, heart-felt kiss on Maura's lips.

"Definitely Maura."

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><p><em>**This short story is complete. Hope it was enjoyable. Feel free to reviewmessage me your thoughts. I will be M.I.A. for the next few months due to school but I look forward to the feedback! Thanks!**_


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